


Goldfish & Milk

by perropascal



Category: The Mentalist
Genre: Chronic Illness, Comfort Food, Domestic Fluff, F/M, goldfish & milk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:00:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27611762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perropascal/pseuds/perropascal
Summary: Marcus comes home to a strangely quiet house.
Relationships: Marcus Pike/Reader, Marcus Pike/You, marcus pike - Relationship
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14





	Goldfish & Milk

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to dedicate this to anyone who silently suffers from an invisible chronic illness. I see you. I believe you. I love you. Stay strong. XOXO

The house was uncharacteristically dark and eerily quiet as Marcus swung open the door. Usually, you were there to eagerly greet him with a kiss and fill him in on all the details he had missed during his commute home. Today, however, he was greeted by your stubborn black and white cat, Oscar, who regards Marcus as with no interest as he makes his way into your shared home disappearing from view. Marcus calls out for you but doesn’t get a reply and a small pang of worry fills his chest. 

Your car had been parked out front, so Marcus knew you had to be home. The two of you had only recently moved in together, and so both of you were still adjusting to one another’s schedule - trying to figure out all the little weird things you don’t notice until you are stuck living with one another. 

When you first met Marcus, three years ago now, things had been so much different. Your career was blossoming. You had recently bought a townhouse all on your own, well to share with your two cats obviously. You were in the best shape of your life, you had even signed up to run the New York marathon with a group of friends. And then you met Marcus and everything else just fell into place. You had never been happier. The two of you were so quick to fall in love, everyone in your life questioned if it could be real. But you didn’t care. With Marcus, everything was blissful and perfect. You were on top of the world. 

That was until the pain started. The unexplained pain. The sudden horrible headaches. The constant fatigue. The inability to sleep. The struggle with your appetite. The pain in your legs whenever you tried to exercise. The headaches whenever you worked longer than a few hours. Everything hurt. All. The. Time.

So you went to doctor after doctor, who explained how healthy you were and how none of this should be happening. Doctor after doctor after doctor. Specialist after specialist all said the same thing. They all got the same results. You were perfectly healthy - it must all be in your head. 

So you agreed to therapy, where you discussed everything and nothing. Did you have some pent up trauma? Sure. Don’t we all? But was it the reason that your life and body were falling apart? Definitely not. You sat through every session and read everybody they offered. But after months of no results and your condition slowly getting worse, you decided it was time to do things your own way if the professionals wouldn’t listen to you. 

And then there was Marcus. Oh, wonderful, beautiful, compassionate, funny, handsome, caring Marcus. He hadn’t once given up on you. He had been at every appointment, taking notes and asking questions, and never once had he doubted you. On the days when you were struggling, he took time out of his day to make sure that everything that needed doing got done, and not by you. 

Marcus had traveled a lot for work. It was a part of his job. But after your second stay in the ER, he had requested a transfer to a new position so that he could be more permanently placed in DC. He had insisted his request was purely a coincidence. He had been tired of all the traveling because he was getting too old for the wear and tear of the job. You knew it was a lie and you resented yourself for making this perfect man quit his dream job. He always insisted that you were his priority. 

Every day you were plagued with the thoughts of how much you didn’t deserve Marcus. You had been forced to quit your job because you couldn’t keep up with the heavy workload. You were going to have to sell your home and move back to your hometown in order to save money, but Marcus wouldn’t even consider the thought of you leaving DC. Both of you decided to move in together and he would help out with the mortgage. He was also helping with all the medical bills that had been stacking up over the past year and a half and it drove you crazy. The constant guilt you felt about how much you owed Marcus weighed you down, but he would never hear a word of it. He always insisted you would do the same for him. 

“Honey,” Marcus calls out as he follows Oscar into the dark house. He listens for a reply but doesn’t get one as he flicks on the light in the kitchen. He can see you had laid out the plates and utensils like you always do in the mornings and he can see the Instant Pot perched on the counter with the contents of whatever meal you had decided to prepare. “Sweetheart, this isn’t funny. Hello?”

Marcus loosens his tie as he makes his way up the stairs next to the kitchen and he hears a small yelp. 

“Sweetheart, is that you?” Marcus asks as he reaches out and slowly opens the door to reveal you lying face down on the floor. You make an attempt to get up but collapse again, falling flat on your face. “Hey, what happened?”

Marcus says this urgently as he gets down to try and help you up. You try and wave him off but you can barely move your head without it throbbing so you end up on your back staring up at a concerned-looking Marcus as you let out a small whine. 

“Fuck, Marcus. I’m so sorry. I went to lay down cause my head is killing me and I must’ve lost track of time and dinner isn’t ready - fuck - I meant to have to all ready and clean, I’m so sorry it’s just my head-,” you say everything so fast as Marcus takes your head in his lap and begins to stroke your hair with a soft smile. 

“I don’t think you need to be making dinner tonight, sweetheart,” he whispers as he continues to lovingly stroke your head. You close your eyes and lean into his touch. 

“No, I do. I have to Marcus. I can’t just be a lazy shit all day.”

“You are far from a lazy shit.”

“No, I didn’t do anything today cause my stupid head. On my screwy body. With this idiot curse, ” You whine as your head throbs again.

“You’re alive.”

“Yeah, but barely.”

“Well, that’s enough for me,” he leans down and places a soft kiss on your forehead. 

“You can’t always be this good to me, Marcus,” you whisper.

“Yes, I can. And yes, I will,” he grins down at you before slowly sliding your head out from under him. “Come on, I need to take care of my girl.”

“Ugh, no - just give me a minute, I’ll be fine and I’ll get dinner ready.”

“No, we aren’t doing this again, sweetheart,” his voice is gentle but firm, letting you know that the conversation is over. “Come on you need a nice, hot bath." 

You feel Marcus slowly get you to your feet and lead you to the bathroom where he starts to run the water. He gently starts to help you take off your clothes making sure to leave plenty of kisses along your newly exposed skin. Even though your head might explode you giggle into his touch. You loved how tender Marcus was with you. He loved showering you with affection and you loved being on the receiving end of his affection. 

Once you’re stripped down he helps you into the tub and you close your eyes as you lay back in the hot water. 

"I’ll be right back, don’t move.”

You just hum in his direction without even opening your eyes to glance in his direction. A few moments later you hear his footsteps and look to see him returning with an armful of things. He had changed out of his work clothes and into his PJs. Your head might explode but you could still appreciate how nice those tight white shirts look on him.

He flicks off the bathroom lights and slowly lowers himself next to the tub as he places two candles on the edge before lighting them. Then he pulls out a bag of your favorite Epsom salt and essential oil. He leans forward to pour it in but hesitates before glancing at you. 

“I - um - how much do I put in?” He looks at you meekly. You just smile and guide his hand as you help pour a generous amount of both into the tub. “And lastly - ” Marcus pulls out your favorite therapeutic facial mask. “Straight from the freezer." 

He helps you put it over your face before you can hear him shuffle back. 

"It’s too quiet,” you murmured.

“I thought the quiet helps,” he answers as he casually leans over and places his elbow on the side of the tub and rests his chin in his hand. 

“It does,” you say. “But your voice helps a lot more.”

“Well, what do you need me to talk about?”

“Just tell me about your day, please.”

And so Marcus launches into the tiny tidbits he hadn’t already shared about his day. He tells you about his annoying co-workers and their gross eating habits. He mentions the case he is working on and how upset some art patron was to find out his painting was a fraud. His voice is the most soothing sound in the world. You don’t completely hear everything because you fade between conscious and unconscious. You let the hot water ease the tension in your body and you can feel yourself actually start to relax. You aren’t sure how long the two of you sit there but after a long while, you feel a tap on your leg and see Marcus leaning over you. 

“I think I better get you in bed before you become more of a wet noodle,” he slides off your face mask and you look up at him brightly. “Plus, the beds’ all ready for us.”

“What’s that mean?”

“I’ll show you.”

Marcus helps you step out of the tub and grabs the fluffiest towel, wrapping you up and pulling you close to his chest. You stand there for a minute in his arms and listen to his steady breathing and you can feel more of the tension leave your body. Marcus slowly unwraps you from the towel and pats you dry before pulling out your favorite pair of underwear and sliding them on, taking extra care to kiss up to your legs before placing one small kiss on your stomach. 

“God, you’re perfect,” he whispers as he stands back up. 

“Marcus, stop. Please, I feel like shit.”

“Fine. Let me show you how much I love your body.”

“I don’t think I - ”

“No, not like that,” he chuckles as he takes your hand and leads you into the bedroom. You scrunch your eyebrows together wondering what this man could be up to now. A small sigh escapes your lips when he pushes the door open and reveals a candlelit room with your bed looking as warm as ever. 

Marcus had set up your diffuser and you could smell the sweet smell of lavender in the air. There is soft spa music coming out of the speaker on the nightstand. You can see he has laid out all the medication he knows you take, though even he has lost track of which one at what time, and there is a small bowl of goldfish and a big glass of milk with your crazy straw pointing out. You stop in the doorway and look at him. 

“Marcus, you didn’t have to do this - you still need to eat - I don’t - " 

"We aren’t having this conversation again, sweetheart. Also, you really think I’m not capable of feeding myself for one night?” He looks at you with a mock expression of offense. “Come on. I want to do this. Please.”

“Fine. But I know it’s only cause you want to touch my naked body.”

“I won’t lie and say that’s not part of it,” he chuckles as leads you to the bed and you lay down on your stomach. You feel him tuck a pillow under your feet as he runs his hands up your naked legs and along your butt onto your back. You shiver at the sensation. 

Marcus had taken it upon himself to learn how to do a basic massage. There were so many nights where you were in pain. So much pain and all he wanted to do was take it away. He found when he touched you it helped to ease the tension both in your body and it eased the tension in your mind. Having him be there helped more than you were ever willing to admit, and he knew it. So he had learned how to give you a message from videos on YouTube, which he knew wasn’t the best way to learn, but he didn’t know what else to do. Watching you literally scream in pain wasn’t an option for him, no, so he had learned what little he could to help. And it still didn’t feel like enough. 

There were nights when Marcus just wanted to take it all away. He wished every day that he could be the one in pain, that he could take it away from you even if it meant he would be miserable. You were too important, too special. You were too bright for this world to be held down by this darkness. 

You hear him pop the oil bottle and pour some on your back and you hiss as the cold liquid hits your skin.

“Sorry, we don’t have all that fancy warming equipment here, miss,” he leans in close and whispers in your ears.

“Yeah, but the service here is impeccable.”

“That’s always good to hear.”

You relax into his touch as he works his hands into your back. He is slow and deliberate with his touches. You try not to focus on the pounding in your head and instead focus on your breathing. You can feel some of the tension leaving as kneads his fingers into your back. He uses his palm to push down on your butt and you groan at the feeling. Every touch from him it feels like he is slowly lifting more and more tension from your body. Several long minutes pass in silence as Marcus concentrates and you glance at your nightstand and see the goldfish and milk. 

“How did you know?” You ask him out of the blue as you stare at the food.

“Know what?”

“About the goldfish and milk?” Marcus merely chuckles at you. 

“I know you pretty well at this point, sweetheart. I know your favorite comfort food.”

“Yeah, but I never told you.”

“No, you’ve never told me.”

“Then how did you know?” You ask as you push yourself up and turn to look at him. 

“Whenever you can’t eat, I always see you grab a small bowl of goldfish and a small glass of milk.”

“You noticed?” You sit and look at him earnestly. 

“You’re surprised?”

“A little,” you confess. 

You were a bit embarrassed by your love for goldfish. They were, after all, considered a children’s snack food. But your family had always had a big box in the pantry growing up. And every day after school you’d get a bowl of goldfish and a glass of milk before settling in front of the TV for your daily dose of soap operas. So the nostalgia for this particular snack never really left. It was one of the few things that you could always stomach. You know other people thought it was absurd. Some people called it disgusting. But it was just a small quirk that you had carried from you from your childhood into your adult life. A small thing that brought you comfort sometimes. A small thing that apparently Marcus Pike had noticed. 

Marcus takes your chin in his hands and stares down at you intently. 

“I know this about you because I love it about you. Because I love you,” he brings his lips to your forehead. “Now lay back down, I haven’t done your front yet.”

“You just want to touch my boobs,” you giggle. 

“You caught me. Now lay down. I’ll give you some goldfish.”

You smile at him as you slowly lower yourself back down on the pillow this time facing up. Marcus reaches into the bowl and grabs a few goldfish. You open your mouth and he pops them in and you can’t help but laugh. You were so helpless but you felt so loved. You knew that Marcus would do anything for you. This moment had made it all the more clear how much he cared about you. 

Marcus Pike was willing to stand by the side of the bed and feed your goldfish till your heart’s content and either of you would change a single thing. Well, maybe your head is pounding. You look at Marcus with glassy eyes.

“If the world ended, right now, I wouldn’t mind. This is my happiest place. With you." 

"Yeah, this wouldn’t be so bad,” you reach up and pull his lips to yours and kiss him. You want him to know how thankful you are and just how much love you feel in that moment. You need him to know that you could never do this without him. So you pull him closer.

“I love you. Do you know that? You know that I can’t imagine doing this without you?”

“And I can’t even think about doing this without you. You’re the love of my life, even if you like goldfish and milk together.” You burst out into a fit of giggles as you feel Marcus pull you into an all-encompassing embrace. 

Your head still hurt, but it didn’t matter because your heart was too full of love for one Marcus Pike. 

____♡____

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr - perropascal


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